Microelectromechanical systems (“MEMS”) are used in a growing number of applications. For example, MEMS currently are implemented as microphones for converting an acoustic signal into an electrical signal. To that end, MEMS microphones often have a movable diaphragm suspended from a stationary backplate to form a variable capacitor. The capacitance of this variable capacitor changes as a function of incident acoustic signals. To receive acoustic signals, a microphone generally has a port in its package. This port consequently exposes the interior components to the outside environment.
The suspended diaphragm and stationary backplate may have very smooth outer surfaces. Consequently, when exposed to humidity, their surfaces may stick together. This phenomenon is known in the art as “stiction,” which is a significant cause of yield loss and reliability failures in a wide variety of MEMS products.